The Blue Jays are heading into the 2026 MLB Draft with pitching on the brain again, and for good reason. Ross Atkins hasn’t exactly built a sterling draft résumé on the mound during his run as Toronto’s general manager - only three starters he’s taken across 10 drafts have reached the majors with any real success: Alek Manoah, Nate Pearson and Trey Yesavage.
Still, the picture looks different now than it did a few years ago. Toronto’s farm system has started to stock up on arms, with three pitchers sitting among the organization’s top five prospects: Johnny King at No.
3, Ricky Tiedemann at No. 4 and Gage Stanifer at No. 5.
Add in 13 more pitchers on the list, and the Blue Jays suddenly have both depth and trade chips as they look to upgrade their big-league pitching before the deadline.
That kind of pipeline only strengthens the case for another pitcher-heavy draft. Toronto used eight of its 20 picks on pitchers last year, then leaned even harder into the arm market in 2024 with 11 pitcher selections, including its first three choices: Yesavage at No. 20 overall, Khal Stephen at No. 59 and King at No.
- In 2023, the Blue Jays took 10 pitchers, and in 2022 they drafted 13.
After dipping to eight last year, the trend suggests they could be back on the hunt for arms in a big way.
The challenge, of course, is that Toronto doesn’t pick until No. 39 because of the 10-pick penalty tied to going over the luxury tax threshold. Even so, there are a few under-the-radar arms who could fit what the Blue Jays like to do.
One name to keep in mind is Logan Schmidt, a left-hander committed to Louisiana State. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound California high school pitcher got dinged for a slow start this season, which helped push him behind some of the other arms in the class.
But he turned heads at events like the Area Code Games and the MLB All-American Game, where he was working with a fastball in the 94-97 mph range and a slider sitting 78-81 mph. He’ll still be just 17 by draft time, and the combination of his LSU commitment and the fact that his fastball doesn’t show a ton of deception could be enough to let him slide.
Jack Radel is another arm that fits the Blue Jays’ type. He was one of the top high school pitchers headed into the 2024 draft, but his commitment to Notre Dame kept teams from taking the plunge.
Since then, he’s kept improving year by year with the Fighting Irish. This past season, he posted a 3.29 ERA over 87.2 innings with 116 strikeouts and a 1.027 WHIP in 15 starts.
Radel’s arsenal is deep. His fastball sits 93-95 mph and can reach 98, and he pairs it with a mid-80s slider, an upper-80s cutter, a curveball in the 78-82 mph range that he generally throws for strikes, and a changeup that can fade and sink against lefties. The Blue Jays have shown plenty of interest in pitchers who bring multiple weapons to the table, and Radel certainly checks that box.
Then there’s Jensen Hirschkorn, who is hard to miss in every sense. The 6-foot-7 right-hander from Northern California is also committed to LSU, but after a strong finish to the summer, he could draw real attention from teams trying to pry him away. He doesn’t have as many pitches as Radel, but the fastball is loud - 95-96 mph with ease - and at 205 pounds, there’s a real sense he could add more and eventually flirt with triple digits if the development goes right.
Hirschkorn also works with a low-80s slider and a mid-80s changeup. The slider generated plenty of chase, while the changeup was used sparingly but looks like a pitch that could become more dangerous down the line. He also played basketball at a high level, and that athleticism is the kind of trait scouts keep circling back to when evaluating young pitchers.
With Toronto drafting so late in the first round, the front office will have to do its homework and make sure it lands on the right arm. But Schmidt, Radel and Hirschkorn all look like the sort of pitchers the Blue Jays could be comfortable betting on if they’re still on the board at No. 39.
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There is still a counterargument for the Jays, because they have found ways to rally often enough to stay afloat, with 20 come-from-behind wins tied for ninth in the majors. But recent series results have put more pressure on every sluggish start, and with another tough test ahead, Toronto cannot keep leaning on recovery mode forever if it wants to stop turning routine nights into uphill climbs. [Read more 🡒]